3 Great Reasons to Visit Christchurch, New Zealand

Christchurch is where the Haka brand all began. In 2007 Haka Tours launched in Christchurch, taking customers around the whole of New Zealand on what was then 26 day tours. In 2011, the Haka brand expanded with the purchase and renovation of a hostel in Christchurch. It has now been in operation for a year and a half, and we have worked our way up to the top of Trip Advisor!

We love Christchurch and it has a special place in our hearts. To celebrate our love for it, we’ve decided to dedicate this blog post to just a few reasons why we love this great city.

It is filled with beautiful gardens and reserves

Christchurch is known as the “garden city” of New Zealand. It has well earned its title. As you walk around the city, you’ll quickly notice that large amounts of grass, trees and plants line the streets. Parks are plentiful (which makes it a fantastic lifestyle city of children) and you will usually only have to walk 5 minutes before you come to one. The biggest park is Hagley Park, which is nestled in the heart of the city and acts as an oasis. If you are interested in beautiful gardens, Christchurch has plenty. Some ones not to miss are the Botanical Gardens and Mona vale Park. There are many reserves too, filled with native bushes, trees and plants. I highly recommend that you visit the Styx Mill reserve.

It is easy for travellers to get around

A fun fact about Christchurch is that the city was built on swampland which was mostly flat. As the city is flat, it has afforded it a lot of advantages. The biggest is that Christchurch has been planned and structured like a grid; the city is broken up into squares and rectangles. Having a grid layout means that it is very easy to travel around; it is impossible to get lost because you are only a few streets away from a main road. It is easy to orientate yourself too because the South of Christchurch is lined with the Port Hills, visible from any point in the city. Another way to find a main road if you get lost is to follow the Avon River, which runs right through the city and intercepts a number of major roads.

The public transport is fantastic

If you are travelling on a budget and lack a car, no worries! Christchurch has a fantastic public transport system that will be able to get you from point A to B anywhere you want to go. There are two buses that combined let you go pretty much anywhere in the city; the “Orbiter” and the “Metrostar”. While there are a number of other buses that go directly to specific areas of the city, the chances that either the Orbiter or Metrostar will be able to drop you off with a 5-10 minute maximum walk to your desired destination. One thing to keep in mind, is that neither the Orbiter or Metrostar go through the city CBD or to the Bus Exchange. Don’t worry; all of the other buses pass through the Bus Exchange.

I hope you enjoyed this blog post. We look forward to seeing you stop by in Christchurch!